Advocates for changing the state's laws for civilly committing addicts to prison have renewed hope for progress this year, buoyed by the recent formation of a special Senate panel tasked with studying the issue.

In general, lawmakers who have been working to end the practice of sending substance abusers who haven't committed a crime to prison say there has been an overall increase in interest in the problem, which has been thrust into the public consciousness in part because of greater attention being paid to drug addiction in the state.

After spending years fruitlessly trying to pass legislation that would stop female substance abusers from being civilly committed to MCI-Framingham, Rep. Kay Khan believes 2014 may finally provide a breakthrough for her latest bill, which was reported favorably out of the Joint Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse last week.

"I'm hopeful," the Newton Democrat said. "I made up my mind at the beginning of this session to see if we could move this along, and I'll continue to try to do that."

Sen. Karen Spilka, who filed legislation similar to Khan's in the Senate last year, is also determined to pass a measure this session, and believes the new Senate Special Committee on Drug Abuse and Treatment Options will drive the effort.

"Clearly the Senate president has made this is a priority, and I'm thrilled about that," said the Democrat from Ashland, who added drug addiction and female prisoner issues have struggled in the past to attract lawmakers' attentions.

Like many prisoner rights advocates, Spilka and Khan believe sending women with substance abuse problems to prison, where they have to spend months away from their families and do not get proper treatment for their addiction, has been a major failure on the part of the state's health care system. But with few beds available at the Department of Public Health's sole treatment center for women - there are currently 90 beds at the New Bedford facility, although more are scheduled to be added soon thanks to a $10 million investment by the government - some women are still at risk to be sent to the already overcrowded MCI-Framingham, the state's only women's prison.

"They're kind of just sitting there, waiting for their release," said Khan, who added the women receive detox at the facility but not the full treatment they would get in New Bedford. "There's a lot more we should be doing for them."

A longtime advocate for female prisoners, Khan said in addition to pushing for more beds at the DPH's treatment center, she has also been working with Middlesex Sheriff Peter Koutoujian to create a new location in the county to house civil commitments. She's also in favor of making more "step-down" programs available to addicts after they exit a treatment facility.

Page 2 of 2 - Sen. Jennifer Flanagan, who is heading up the new special committee, said the panel will take a similar wide-view approach to the issue, with everything from insurance providers' role to the need for more post-treatment options on the table.

"There's no set agenda," the Leominster Democrat. "The only goal is to help improve addiction treatment in Massachusetts."

Toward that end, the committee plans to hold public meetings across the state over the next few months to hear from constituents, and will release its recommendations sometime later this year.

Flanagan said it's clear the state needs to do something - "Every time you turn around, there's another story, another family in turmoil," she said.

Khan believes a growing alliance of advocates, families and judges in the state could provide the momentum needed to achieve a long-awaited change.

"There's still a lot of work that needs to be done," she said. "But we're in a good moment here."

Scott O'Connell can be reached at 508-626-4449 or soconnell@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottOConnellMW